Articles

Under a visionary Green government, investment in science and technology will be given a high priority with the construction of three science and technology universities.

With a Green government, science and technology universities will become a major component of the SVG economy, creating a massive amount of jobs and revenue. Crucially, this will propel us as a nation to unlock the currently wasted, huge potential of our people and our indigenous resources.

Science and technology universities will create long-term jobs for teaching staff, support staff and maintenance staff. Science and technology universities will boost our country's income by winning research contracts from companies abroad and having foreign students learning and living in SVG.

With a highly educated population we will see a significant increase of entrepreneurs starting up new businesses and this will create jobs, bring revenue to the country and strengthen the economy as more money will be circulating in the country. It will lead to new products being created in SVG and our exports tapping in to new markets throughout the world.

With a highly educated population, we will see significantly more Vincentians being offered and taking up highly paid, highly qualified jobs abroad and sending remittances back home to support their families. This will help boost economic growth and bring surplus revenue. Surplus revenue is the key.

The problem with the ULP regime is that they lack competence in finance and economics, and this is illustrated in their backward pursuit of tourism at any expense. The ignorant pursuit of tourism has led to the serious downfall of our economy and the demise of social stability and happiness.

A classic comparison is Greece's heavy reliance on tourism. Greece's economy crashed as the revenue yield from tourism fell substantially lower than Greece's current expenditure. Greece's economy became bankrupt. SVG's economy has become bankrupt under Gonsalves' incompetence and foolish policies.

The revenue yield from tourism cannot sustain SVG government's current expenditure, such as employees' salaries, interest payments and other transfers. The equation between expenditure and revenue shows a fiscal deficit. It shows disaster as the outcome, with significant public sector job losses. We must abandon tourism to avert this pending disaster in SVG.

Finance and economic success examples around the world indicate that an SVG economy driven by science and technology universities will kill the fiscal deficit and create surplus revenue. This surplus revenue will be the catalyst for economic growth, sustainable development and save public sector jobs in SVG.

The ULP regime waste taxpayers' money by spending it on tourism which brings little returns. A Green government investing in science and technology universities will bring substantial returns, financially and socially. Human happiness will improve the quality of life of our nation and be instrumental in eradicating crime.

Singapore and South Korea are classic examples of science and technology driven economies that produce a higher yield in revenue, high paid jobs and a greater quality of life. Science and technology is the clear alternative to tourism as the engine of SVG economy.

We need to change the perception and international image of SVG away from a poor country with a low yielding, floundering economy failing with tourism, to a prosperous country with a high yielding, strong economy, successful with science and technology, and producing highly skilled, highly paid jobs.